


The Gunslinger Rises

by spike_spiegels_nutt



Category: Dark Tower - Stephen King
Genre: Book: The Gunslinger, Drabble, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-15
Updated: 2019-04-15
Packaged: 2020-01-14 15:26:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 943
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18479026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spike_spiegels_nutt/pseuds/spike_spiegels_nutt
Summary: Drabble I wrote with an original gunslinger character in mind.





	The Gunslinger Rises

The village was being consumed in flames. Yuuki, the young village shepherdess, choked as another plume of smoke and dust billowed, another building fallen to the silver fire of He Who Walks in Shadows. Yuuki’s vision blurred as tears sprung from her itching eyes, unable to see more than a foot in front of her. A screaming woman ran past her, knocking her shoulder and causing Yuuki to collapse. Her legs too weak to stand, Yuuki half-crawled, half-clawed herself to the wall of a barn, retching and nose running. As she curled herself against the building, Yuuki heard the unmistakable sound of blade on stone. The Butchers had swarmed into the village undetected about an hour ago and had begun to slaughter and burn anything in their path. Yuuki didn’t have to turn around to know she was being stalked. Irresistibly, Yuuki stole a glance behind. A masked thing, too animal to be human, too human to be animal, was steadily approaching her hiding spot, dragging his sword loosely behind him. Instead of feeling panic, or even fear, Yuuki felt a wave of calm wash over her, relaxing the tension in her body. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to focus on the scraping that drew nearer.   
As the scraping reached a loud zenith, Yuuki heard another sound. The whirring click of mechanics rare and long gone from the village. The Butcher must’ve heard it, too, because the scraping ceased. There was an explosive bang, and Yuuki’s eyes flew open just in time to see the Butcher drop to the ground at her feet, mask sliding off.  
“Don’t look at it!” a low voice barked at Yuuki, and Yuuki immediately threw her head up to the sky, hitting her head against the side of the barn. The sky looked so peaceful and unaware of the carnage happening beneath. Yuuki felt strong arms grip her shoulders, and she was dragged up and over the dead body.   
“You can stop looking up now.” the voice came again, quieter than before but by no means less rough. Yuuki’s gaze fell to her rescuer, appraising them from the top-down.   
The woman—for it was indeed so—had sandy blondish-brunette hair, which was curly and thick. The cut was short, and Yuuki could see that the length was unintentional. There was dead hair at the ends, singed and split as if caught in flame. One side was a tad longer than the other, but it didn't look too bad. The woman’s face was hard-set and stony, with dead eyes and a firm jaw. She looked irritated, calculating, and bored all at once. Yuuki felt herself unwillingly blush. Beyond that, Yuuki couldn’t see much of her figure, as the woman was wearing a black leather duster that was cracked and flaking in many places. It seemed oversized on her, surely a hand-me-down. Her boots were of the same leather, but unblemished, if not dusty. But it was the .45 single-chambered gun in the woman’s hand that really caught Yuuki’s attention.  
“Where did you get that?” Yuuki whispered, and the woman pointedly ignored her, polishing the end of the gun with her sleeve. “There are no more gunslingers around here.” At this, the woman halted and stared blankly at Yuuki.  
“Who said I was a gunslinger?” she replied in that same low tone. Before Yuuki could open her mouth, there was a cry of anguish. Turning around, the women could see a Butcher curled over the fallen comrade, shrieks of pain emitting from behind the mask.   
“More will be coming.” the woman murmured allowed, and Yuuki’s body seized with latent fear. Sure enough, before the woman could tug Yuuki away, a swarm of Butchers flooded the passages around them, blocking their escape routes. Whipping around, the woman surveyed the surroundings, face still impassive.  
“There’s too many. They’ll kill us.” Yuuki whispered, tugging at the woman’s jacket. Shrugging her off, the woman sighed deeply, closing her eyes. The Butchers squawked and screamed around them, taking their time closing the gaps.   
“I do not aim with my hand.” the woman said clearly, breathing deeply and eyes still shut. “She who does has forgotten the face of her father. I aim with my eyes.” Slowly, the woman swished open her jacket, revealing layers of perfectly-polished bullets.   
“I do not shoot with my hand. She who does has forgotten the face of her father. I shoot with my mind.” Just as slowly, the woman brought her gun up with one arm, the Butchers growing tighter.   
“I do not kill with my gun. She who does has forgotten the face of her father. I kill with my heart.” With a last deep breath, the woman slid bullets into the gun as smoothly and quickly as anything Yuuki had ever seen. Before she could register the action, the woman was already shooting the Butcher around them, gliding and twisting gracefully and with power. All it took was one bullet per kill, and Yuuki felt herself being dragged and pushed as the woman executed a beautiful, deadly dance. It was only when the last one was killed that the woman finally opened her eyes and steadied her breathing to normal, gaze sliding over the bodies around her.   
“I thought you said you weren’t a gunslinger?” Yuuki said softly. The woman had already begun bending over bodies to look for bullets.  
“There are no more gunslingers.”   
“But what you did… thank you for saving me. Thank you for saving our village.”  
“You’re lucky you people have a bar here I like.” Came the curt response, and the woman walked off into a dust cloud, away from Yuuki.


End file.
